


effervescence

by deepnest



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Bubble Bath, Domestic Fluff, F/F, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-27
Updated: 2020-02-27
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:35:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22928059
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deepnest/pseuds/deepnest
Summary: It isn't so much that Lace forgets that her charming partner hails from a ruined kingdom. It's only that, sometimes, the little things can catch them both off guard. Hornet catches the scent of something sweeter.
Relationships: Hornet/Lace (Hollow Knight)
Comments: 13
Kudos: 125





	effervescence

**Author's Note:**

> listen I am not using the word exactly right but it's close and it counts
> 
> anyway, Hornet deserves a break and Lace is going to give her one.

Lace looked up from her book as Hornet emerged from the bathroom. She didn't stir otherwise, remaining curled loosely against the armrest of the lounge. She merely observed. Hornet held her needle sheathed at her side, and had already fastened her cloak back into place.

Lace  _ tsk _ ed. "Oh, you can't be done already?" 

Hornet swung the sheath onto her back. "I am." 

Lace tipped her cheek into her hand again. "You were in there for perhaps… five minutes? Dear, sweet Hornet, you cannot be done."

"This is how long it always takes me, is it not? I am done. The bathroom is yours, by the way." 

" _No._ You can't be done. Did you even wash?" 

"Of course I did. What else would I have done?" 

"Did you use any shampoo?" Lace set her book down suddenly, and straightened up. "Did you even take off your mask?" 

"Shampoo - oh." Hornet recalled the various bottles and vials sitting in a little stand near the edge of the tub. She had ignored them, as always, in favor of the plain soap that was more familiar to her. Although, she had had such substances used _on_ her when she was very small. "I did wash, thank you, and I used soap. I'm quite clean."

"It's not about being clean, darling." 

"Now this is becoming an enigma." Hornet crossed the room to stand in front of the coffee table. She stared down at Lace. "Are you concerned with my washing, or not?" 

Lace met Hornet's gaze with a coy smile. "Oh! After a day like you had, you simply must have a proper soak."

"A day inside, discussing logistics for wider-roaming hunting parties and trap manufacture?" Hornet snorted, "The only mess I might have gotten in was Kip's blood. But I believe I made my point sufficiently without drawing any, and he knows well how he vexed me."

"Just so. It sounded like a nightmare, my love."

Lace leaped from the lounge and over the table in front of it in one movement, landing with a pirouette. She finished the movement by taking Hornet's shoulders gently. Hornet  _ hmm _ ed, but stayed where she was, so Lace slid her hands down Hornet's back. She massaged the top plate of Hornet's carapace under her cloak. 

Hornet squared her shoulders, and winced. Lace clicked her mandibles.

"So stiff. Such tension in your shell... You're not one who does well cooped up, beloved. Inside from morning till evening? Oh, my poor dear heart, I know just the thing for you, after a day like this one."

"Do you, now?"

"Oh, yes! A long, hot bath."

Lace's hands slipped back over Hornet's shoulders, and undid the fastening of her cloak again. Hornet looked down at Lace's hand, still clutching the collar shut.

"Well?" Lace chirped.

"Well. I suppose such determination should be rewarded." Hornet slid her needle back off, and allowed Lace to remove her cloak and fold it over one arm. She set it on the table with a flourish, and twirled past Hornet.

"Come, now. We're going to do this properly this time." 

Lace led her back into the bathroom. She turned on the water, and as the tub began to fill, she selected a lavender glass bottle from the stand, and shook it by the stopper. "This will be just the thing." 

Hornet squinted at the etching.  "What is it?"

"What is-? Oh. My." 

"What?"

"It's bubble bath." 

Lace tipped in a portion of the bottle's contents into the tub, and stepped away. 

"Watch, beloved. Behold a marvel of our modern age."

As the tub filled, a layer of froth bloomed over the water, and a floral scent rose with it. Hornet scooped up a handful of bubbles, and let them fall away. "What _is_ this?"

"Bubble bath," Lace repeated. She returned the bottle to its proper place. "It does what you see."

Hornet stayed leaning over the tub. "But… why?"

"Why not?" Lace laughed. "There is a reason, I suppose. But I think you'll be better off experiencing it."

"By washing." Hornet was dubious.

"No, in fact. Just soaking in it, my dear. A little luxury is good for the shell."

Lace turned the water off, pecked the horn of Hornet's mask, and left. 

Hornet exhaled. She set her needle down, and rested it against the side of the tub.

She slid into the water. The bubbles settled around her shell. They were soft. Strange. The water underneath was still just that, water, although hot and pleasant. She sank down to her shoulders, and then, after a moment of the water lapping around her collarplate, to the bottom of her mask.

She lifted a hand up through the foam, and tipped her fingers down to let it drain away again. She repeated the gesture with both hands, this time parting her palms to empty them, as if making the bath an offering of its own iridescent substance. 

She splashed just once. Just to see, to feel what the difference might be. The bubbles burst under her hand, although they were too small and numerous for her to really feel them. The sound echoed off the tile, and she slid her hand down again, and steepled her fingers under the water.

Alright. One more splash. She wiped some foam from her mask, and shook it back into the water. She swept her hands through the bubbles, seeing how they sloshed. She sculpted, to the extent that she could, forming a shapeless pile directly in front of herself. She watched it keenly, as if prey might have emerged.

It was simply soft. Strange. The steam that rose around her was sweet, mild, so unlike the salt-sharp of the hotsprings. Those woke the senses as they healed. This, though. She let her head fall back onto the edge of the tub. She wasn't sure if she'd call it healing. She wasn't sure what to call it at all.  _ A little luxury _ , Lace had said. It seemed Hornet was meant to dwell here for a time. She could consider it.

She closed her eyes. 

*

Hornet woke up to a knock on the door. The water was cold and flat around her.

"Hornet? Are you alright? You didn't drown in there, did you?" Her tone was light, but the use of Hornet's name made it clear - Lace was concerned, if probably not about Hornet drowning.

Hornet had no idea how long she'd been asleep. 

"I am fine," she called back. "I will be out in a moment."

"No, no. Take your time. If you're enjoying yourself, I'm certainly not going to stop you!"

Hornet studied her surroundings. The water was cold, and the bubbles were gone. 

She called, "Lace?"

"Yes, dear heart?"

"You may come in. I have a question."

"My, my, alright." Lace opened the door, and stepped inside. Although they were alone, she closed it carefully behind her. "What is it?"

Hornet asked, "Are all of these marvels of yours so sweetly scented?"

She had no doubt that she sounded like a child in a sweetshop. If Lace was so keen to show Hornet marvels, then surely Hornet had some right to marvel at them. Surely.

Lace beamed. "Most of them. Did you want to try something else?"

"I do not know."

Hornet shifted, lifting herself and wrapping one hand over the edge of the tub. Her claws were stark and shining on the white porcelain. She examined the little rack nearby, but little of it meant anything to her. She knew the herbs and flowers. She knew what shampoo was. She wasn't ignorant. She had had such substances used on her when she was very small. 

But that had been some time ago. So she was forced to admit, "I do not… know what there is."

Lace's mandibles parted, and she pressed a hand between them considerately. "Then we should discuss your choices! But first..." She dipped a fingertip into the water, and scowled. "Absolutely frigid. This won't do at all."

She switched the tap back on, and a flow of fresh, warm water broke the surface and drove some of the old back into the pipes. 

Lace wandered around to the other side of the tub as the water ran, and went on lightly, "And for most of this… You will want your mask off."

Her finger tapped the point on the back of Hornet's mask that separated the seam.

"May I, Hornet?"

Hornet nodded, and tipped her head forward. "Alright." 

Lace pressed down, and lifted the mask away over Hornet's head. Lace hung it carefully on the rack. She then moved on to examine the other contents, lifting a few bottles and reviewing the etchings. "Now, let's see-"

Hornet cut in, "You may surprise me. Or choose. Or I will accept your recommendation."

"Are you certain you're alright, dear heart?" Lace took Hornet's shoulders, and leaned in, pressing their faces together. "You fell asleep earlier, didn't you?"

"Yes," Hornet said. Lace opened her mouth, but Hornet shook her head.

She didn't know what had come over her. She was tired, in spite of her nap earlier. It was different, too - often she had felt the kind of exhaustion that she could beat back if she had to, a sensation she could shake from her shell to spring from her little camp, or just keep moving if there was nowhere safe to rest. This tiredness held her in a looser grip, but somehow, she couldn't stop herself from sinking into it. 

"I _am_ fine. But new information, mm… Now is not the time for that, I think. I think it would go in one ear and out the other. So, it is your choice."

"Hmm. Well, perhaps I'll take advantage - a little shampoo, to show my poor dear heart what you've missed. Good for the shell, you know." 

"So you keep insisting. Very well." Hornet held out a hand, and Lace placed a delicate green bottle into her grasp. Hornet undid the stopper, holding it carefully against the bottle as she spilled some of its contents into her free hand. She closed it, somewhat poorly, but enough to pass it back to Lace without spilling. 

She began to pat it onto her shell as she always did, spreading it before working it into the chitin with practiced speed. 

"Oh, absolutely not!" Lace huffed.

"What?" Hornet asked blankly. 

"No, no, no. Goodness. You need a little  _ luxury _ , dear heart. None of this…" Lace swept her hand in the air, mimicking Hornet's rapid motion. "Scrubbing. No. Let me."

"Oh." Hornet's fangs flicked. She nodded. "Alright."

"Look at me," Lace said, with such resolute tenderness that Hornet did. 

Lace smiled, and pressed a hand to Hornet's cheek. "Luxury, dear. Our watchword this evening. It's no good if you aren't enjoying yourself." 

"I am. It's only that I've never… You must understand, there wasn't much…"

"I know."

"And I never wanted…" Hornet shook her head.

"I know. You never wanted," Lace said quietly. "Do you want now?" 

Hornet had to think about it. She _had_ to, and once she did - yes, there was desire. She felt good. She felt warm and safe. And she wanted these things: goodness, warmth, and safety. Would it hurt? Just to have a little of these? Maybe. But she had risked worse on less. 

"I think I do. I do." 

"Then it's yours, my love, one and only." Lace pulled the bathmat around behind the tub, and settled onto it. She rolled up her sleeves. "Rinse that off." 

Hornet submerged herself completely, down to the tips of her horns. She ran her hands over her head to clear away the layer of suds. When she emerged, Lace poured a measure of the clear, syrupy liquid onto her own palm, and then rubbed her hands together. 

"Ready, Hornet?" 

"I suppose so."

Lace leaned forward, and tilted her head. "You suppose? I'll wait, then."

Hornet said, "Yes."

Lace rested her hands on Hornet's head, allowing a moment for her to adjust to the contact. Then Lace started with the shell between Hornet's horns, and worked her way up along their inner curve.

The liquid foamed under Lace's touch, her thumbs working sure circles up to the tips of the horns and back down. Hornet sank down in the water to her shoulders, and tipped her head back so that Lace would have an easier reach. She shivered, and Lace stopped immediately.

"Is that enough? You've tried it, and that's all I wanted."

"No. No, continue." 

There was an almost imperious tint to Hornet's voice, one that drew a fond hum from Lace. She angled Hornet's head forward again, in order to work down the back of her head. The smell was herbal and sweet. Lace's touch, though light, was as deceptively powerful as the rest of her. Hornet went limp; let herself go limp, her joints melting in the water. She closed her eyes; this time with the anchor of that touch to keep herself from drifting away entirely.

When Lace's hands finally stilled, Hornet leaned back again to bump the side of one horn against her cheek. Lace rested a hand there, in turn, and pressed a kiss to the now-lightly scented chitin. 

"There. That should do - for now. I'll leave you to dry off, my dear." 

Hornet nodded, without opening her eyes. Lace stood up, and left once again. 

Hornet lingered another moment before getting out, but she made the climb, in the end. Her limbs were curiously weightless; she was just so tired that it was hard to move. She realized just how exhausted she was when she found herself searching for her cloak, as if she could have possibly missed the red against all the bathroom's white. 

_ Right. I let her take it. _

She slipped into one of a few dressing gowns Lace kept on a hook by the door, instead. Hornet held it closed around her waist, and lifted an arm. The sleeve flowed from her wrist; the material was loose and silky, pleasantly cool in the humid room. 

Now she understood how Lace always managed to look so languid in these. Hornet felt languid in this one. She reclaimed her needle and mask, and returned to the apartment proper.

This time, Lace did not look up right away, but she uncurled her legs and straightened to make space.

Hornet set down what she was holding, and settled next to Lace. Lace lifted an arm, and Hornet slipped under it. She let her head sink onto Lace's shoulder.

Lace said, "That's better, isn't it, beloved?"

"I can't say," Hornet whispered.

Lace returned her book to the table, and looked down, although it meant craning her neck at that angle. "No?"

"No." Hornet scoffed. "All I can say is, if anything threatens us, you will have to handle the matter alone. I'm no use like this."

Lace's hand settled on Hornet's cheek, and angled her face up. "So what? I don't keep you near to be useful, darling." 

"I see." Hornet stretched up long enough to kiss Lace, a swift click of chitin. Her tone was light, but her fangs flickered open and shut. "Then whatever am I here for?"

"Pampering, of course. My dear, sweet Hornet, you're overdue some looking-after."

Hornet snorted.

"I'm quite serious," Lace said. "Just try to test me."

"Oh, I would never," Hornet replied, deadpan. "I just cannot recall if I have ever been called sweet before. I think I might behave unkindly to anyone else who tried."

Lace tapped between Hornet's fangs. Hornet snapped them shut, but well after Lace's hand was away.

"So I'm special, am I?"

"Extremely. I have yet to meet another bug like you, and I've no doubt I never will," Hornet answered solemnly. 

"Gracious… Use your gift at flattery more, won't you?" Lace smiled. "You'd win so many favors."

"I don't want them. Nor is it flattery, as you well know."

"I do," Lace said softly. "I know very well. Nonetheless, I have some favors to bestow."

Hornet closed her eyes, and tucked her legs onto the lounge. "I shall consider it."

Lace answered smartly, "If you _really_ want to know what's good for the shell: bath salts, for one."

"Hm. Hm, hm, hm."

"Supper, then."

Hornet's eyes snapped open. "A worthy favor indeed. I accept."

Lace giggled. "You'll have to let me up."

Hornet wrapped an arm over Lace, and pulled her closer. "Then perhaps I should reconsider."

"No. I'm hungry. Let me up, or we'll both perish." Lace mimed swooning back onto the lounge. 

"What dreadful power to hold…" Hornet looked up at her, and lifted her fangs in a grin. Lace's cheeks brightened with cool blood, and Hornet grinned wider. But she sat up to allow Lace free. "You'll return soon, won't you?"

"To you? Always. Always, Hornet." 

Lace stood, and claimed Hornet's hand to kiss it. Then Lace departed for the kitchen, to arrange the promised favor. 


End file.
